Reliance Jio 4G speeds up by 50pc as free data offers end

When Mukesh Ambani’s telecom venture- Reliance Jio officially debuted last September, it was all about amassing as many customers as possible with never-ending offers from the telco that included both free voice calls as well as data. While the strategy did prove to be successful, it had a negative effect on Jio’s 4G speeds that had to bear the brunt of so much data deluge.

But the things look promising now as Reliance Jio’s 4G speeds have witnessed a substantial growth since it discontinued its free data offers, according to a new blog post by OpenSignal. In OpenSignal’s last State of Mobile Networks report for India, Jio, though topped the 4G network availability chart but ranked last in 4G speed. However, much has changed since April when Jio’s freebies ended.

“In April, most of Jio’s freebie plans ended, and customers found themselves paying for their data services. The result: Jio’s speeds have increased — not just increased, they’ve skyrocketed,” the blog post noted.

From 4.2 Mbps average speed between the test periods ending in March and April, Jio’s 4G download speeds ballooned to 5.8 Mbps for May-July period. This is a massive 50 percent jump from 3.9 Mbps seen at the beginning of 2017. OpenSignal notes that the increased speeds are a result of multiple factors that include an upgraded network capacity and also users limiting their data intake as now they have to pay for it.

The rise in speeds bodes well for the telco which now faces the biggest challenge of retaining its customer base. Another hope for Mukesh Ambani’s telco is its recently launched ‘free’ 4G mobile phone that is due for delivery this Navratri. The feature phone comes at an effective price of Rs 0 and will offer users unlimited 4G data at Rs 153 per month. The company reportedly received 6 million Jio Phone bookings in a day.